Saddletree.



PATENTED JUNE 25, 1907.

' J. BEVAN. SADDLETREE. APPLICATION FILED FEB. 16, 1907.

INVENTOR 72 g? AT RN'EY WITNESSES:

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JOSEPH BEVAN, or NEWARK, NEW JERSEY.

SADDLETRElE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 25, 1907.

Application filed February 15, 1907- Serial No. 357,478.

To on whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JosEPH BEVAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New J ersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Saddletrees; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters of reference -marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to a saddletree, used in saddles, for any kind of saddles, either military or the usual riding saddle, and it is also designed for use in racing saddles, and the object of the invention is to make a saddle that will not split when subjected to strains in any direction, and is particularly adapted for withstanding strains across the rear portion of the saddletree where the breakage is now usually encountered.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which the figure illustrates a saddletree made after my design and idea, and it is of the usual shape and form, and comprises a body portion 10 which is equipped with the usual braces 11 which go to make up a stiff structure, and one able to stand up under hard usage. As previously made, the body portion 10 has been composed of very thin wood, practically a veneer, and this wood has been found to split along the grain at the point indicated by the reference numeral 12 in the drawing, this being the particular place where breakage has been noticed. As the saddletrees are made, the grain of the wood runs across the tree at this point, and it has split very often, causing an upsetting of the shape of the tree.

In my improved saddle I make the body portion of a homogeneous material having no grain, and that can be subjected to a bending strain without breaking, and the material that is particularly adapted for this purpose, that I have discovered gives the best results, is fiber. This material, when made up into these trees, I have found stands all strains and does not split nor crack under twisting or bending applied to the saddletree.

The fiber mentioned herein is the usual commercial fiber that is made of vegetablefibers subjected to chemicals and then vulcanized, after which it is heavily rolled and pressed to make a hard substance. Commercial fiber, when heated or subjected to a water treatment, becomes pliable and soft and regains its rigidity on drying. The fiber is not brittle, but is tough and elastic. The saddletree is made by taking a sheet of fiber and cutting out the shape desired by a proper tool, and then the saddletree is bent into the required shape and is secured by means of the metallic braces 11, these braces being disposed at points best adapted for the purpose. Other fibers, except those that are made of vegetable fibers, are too hard for this purpose, and an awl cannot be driven through for the purposes of perforating it where it is necessary to rivet or sew.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

Asaddletree comprising a body portion cut to the required shape from a sheet of fiber, the fiber being bent into the required shape to form a saddletree, and braces secured to the inner and outer surfaces of the body portion and suitably disposed to strengthen it.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing, I have hereunto set my hand this 14th day of February 1907.

JOSEPH BEVAN.

WVitnesses:

E. A. PELL, WM. H. OAMFIELD. 

